Elderly residents – some in wheelchairs and some dependent on oxygen tanks – were blinded by deadly smoke as they tried to escape an assisted-living facility in Fall River, Massachusetts, which caught fire Sunday evening.

The Massachusetts assisted-living facility that caught fire Sunday evening was slated to undergo a recertification and compliance review process later this year.

WBZ-TV 's I-Team has found Dennis Etzkorn, the owner of Gabriel House in Fall River, has legal controversies in his past.

Flames roared through an assisted-living residence in Massachusetts, killing nine people, injuring 30 others and trapping residents inside.

Around 50 firefighters, including dozens who were off-duty, rushed to Gabriel House in downtown Fall River just before 10 p.m. local time Sunday.

Top Massachusetts officials are suggesting the state consider new ways to regulate and finance so-called affordable assisted living homes after the deadly fire Sunday night at the facility for seniors in Fall River that relies heavily on public funding.

Flames roared through an assisted-living facility in Massachusetts, killing nine people and trapping residents inside, including some who leaned out of windows and screamed for help.

A former employee said she never saw the staff perform fire drills. The local fire chief pushed back at claims that dispatching more firefighters would’ve saved more lives.